# Starter base – Dune Desert

> Canonical source: [Starter base – Dune Desert](https://satisfactorybase.com/guides/starter-base-dune-desert)
> Language: en

Version check pending: The fixed machine list and distances have not been recalculated for the current export. Listed node IDs and locations apply to the default world, not randomized resource settings.

A Tier 0–2 starter factory in the centre of the Dune Desert – two pure iron nodes, two normal copper nodes and a normal limestone node feed the 240-ore starter set; biomass and water are only in the oases.


The Dune Desert is huge, flat and full of pure nodes – seven pure iron nodes lie across its centre alone. What makes it "advanced" is the beginning: biomass only grows in the tree oases and along the river, water is at the oasis lakes or the coast, and the nodes are spread out over a couple of kilometres. Once the coal plant runs it is the best megabase start of the map.

Planner factory: [Dune Desert – Starter base](/w/starter-guide/factories/9f49a6f7-3090-5e85-a350-72559e2590bc) · [map](/w/starter-guide/map#-1;288974;-104883)

## Nodes

Miner Mk.1 at 100 %; coordinates in game metres (X east, Y south). The cluster is centred on the copper/limestone group; the two pure iron nodes are 350–450 m away in opposite directions, so this base needs two longer belts.

| Node | Resource | Purity | Position (m) | Rate /min |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BP_ResourceNode196 | :icon[Desc_OreIron_C] [Iron Ore](/wiki/items/iron-ore) | pure | 2553, −917 | 120 |
| BP_ResourceNode180 | :icon[Desc_OreIron_C] Iron Ore | pure | 2859, −1277 | 120 |
| BP_ResourceNode141 | :icon[Desc_OreCopper_C] [Copper Ore](/wiki/items/copper-ore) | normal | 2977, −1080 | 60 |
| BP_ResourceNode194 | :icon[Desc_OreCopper_C] Copper Ore | normal | 2974, −964 | 60 |
| BP_ResourceNode189 | :icon[Desc_Stone_C] [Limestone](/wiki/items/limestone) | normal | 3087, −1007 | 60 |

More within 1 km: pure iron (2737, −1482), (2976, −1502), (3195, −1581), (3485, −1238); normal iron (2669, −1207), (2685, −1169); pure limestone (3116, −698); a third normal copper (2776, −941) and pure copper (3428, −1147); normal sulfur (3804, −1095). No quartz and no oil in the biome – the big oil field is just over the canyon to the north-west.

## What it builds

| Product | /min |
|---|---|
| :icon[Desc_IronPlate_C] [Iron Plate](/wiki/items/iron-plate) | 30 |
| :icon[Desc_IronRod_C] [Iron Rod](/wiki/items/iron-rod) | 30 |
| :icon[Desc_IronScrew_C] [Screws](/wiki/items/screws) | 60 |
| :icon[Desc_IronPlateReinforced_C] [Reinforced Iron Plate](/wiki/items/reinforced-iron-plate) | 5 |
| :icon[Desc_ModularFrame_C] [Modular Frame](/wiki/items/modular-frame) | 3 |
| :icon[Desc_Wire_C] [Wire](/wiki/items/wire) | 90 |
| :icon[Desc_Cable_C] [Cable](/wiki/items/cable) | 30 |
| :icon[Desc_Cement_C] [Concrete](/wiki/items/concrete) | 20 |

Uses 222 of 240 iron ore, 75 of 120 copper ore and all 60 limestone. Each pure iron node needs two Mk.1 belts or one Mk.2 belt.

## Machines (default recipes, 100 %)

| Building | Recipe | Machines | Build |
|---|---|---|---|
| :icon[Desc_SmelterMk1_C] [Smelter](/wiki/buildings/smelter) | Iron Ingot | 7.4 | 8 |
| Smelter | Copper Ingot | 2.5 | 3 |
| :icon[Desc_ConstructorMk1_C] [Constructor](/wiki/buildings/constructor) | Iron Plate | 4.35 | 5 |
| Constructor | Iron Rod | 6.1 | 7 |
| Constructor | Screw | 4.35 | 5 |
| Constructor | Wire | 5 | 5 |
| Constructor | Cable | 1 | 1 |
| Constructor | Concrete | 1.33 | 2 |
| :icon[Desc_AssemblerMk1_C] [Assembler](/wiki/buildings/assembler) | Reinforced Iron Plate | 1.9 | 2 |
| Assembler | Modular Frame | 1.5 | 2 |

≈ 35 machine-equivalents, ≈ 180 MW average plus 25 MW for the miners – six Biomass Burners. Collect leaves and wood in the oasis by the river before you place them, or start smaller (plates, rods, wire) and grow into the set as the [coal plant](/guides/coal-power-setup#dune-desert) comes online.

## Layout tips

- Put the base on the sand between the copper nodes and the limestone node; the terrain is flat enough for machines without foundations.
- Belt the two pure iron nodes in from the west and south-west (350–450 m of Mk.1 belt each – cheap in this biome, iron is everywhere).
- Coal with water: three normal coal nodes at the oasis lakes 800 m east ([Dune Desert coal power](/guides/coal-power-setup#dune-desert)). The pure + normal pair on the east coast (4045, −1168) is the next step up.


- [Open the factory in the planner](/w/starter-guide/factories/9f49a6f7-3090-5e85-a350-72559e2590bc)

- [Show on the map](/w/starter-guide/map#-1;288974;-104883)

- [Choosing a start location](/guides/starter-locations)

- [Coal power setup](/guides/coal-power-setup)